Maia Song Contest 23

The Maia Song Contest 23 will be the twenty-third edition of the Maia Song Contest, held in Ágá, Izola, as neither the winner of the last contest, D'unelaleh, nor runners-up Borulea were able to host.

This contest marks the first time in the contest's history that the host country is not the winner, nor the runner-up of the previous edition.

Location
IZT and the MBU announced the conditions under which cities and venues could announce their interest in hosting the contest.


 * The host city had to be near a major airport.
 * The venue must be available for the rehearsal period before the contest and one week after the conclusion of the contest
 * The venue must not be open-air, but an air-conditioned building with a capacity of at least 10,000 and a minimum ceiling height of 15 metres (49 ft), insulated for sound and light.
 * The green room must be located as close to the arena as possible (or within it), with a capacity of 300.

Host venue

Semi-final allocations
As with previous editions, all participating countries were to be allocated to semi-finals using pots based off previous voting patterns.

Semi Final 1
, and  will vote in this semi-final.


 * a. Specificially, the song is performed in the Fenno-Swedish dialect.

Semi Final 2
, and  will vote in this semi-final.

Explulsions of D'unelaleh and Qualton
On 8 December 2018, D'unelaleh and Qualton were stripped of their MBU membership, meaning they could no longer participate in the contest. The MBU spokesperson, Lynda Woodruff, called it an "unfortunate affair", adding "It's such a shame, as this was so avoidable". A full statement was released shortly afterwards, explaining that the countries were removed due to corruption within the respective broadcasters, and practices that were seen as in contrast with the spirit of the organisation.

In addition, D'unelaleh was forced to give up hosting rights as the broadcaster refused to fund the contest if it were not given full membership.

Stage intrusion of Crystal Izzy
During the live broadcast of the grand final results, a Maiafan known as Crystal Izzy stormed the stage and grabbed the microphone from host Catherine Tate. She ran around the stage, shouting "Hey slutty boys" for approximately two minutes before being removed by security. In addition, one member of the audience heckled that she is a "fat cunt", prompting her to shout back "How am I fat?? You can't even see me". She was arrested by Izol officials the same evening, and more information is expected in the coming days.

In a post-show interview, Catherine Tate stated that she "ain't bovverred" in regards to the situation.

Accusations of deaf insensitivity
The contest's producers were accused of insensitivity towards deaf people, after no preparations were made for Björnsk voting spokesperson Nyle DiMarco. After host Catherine Tate announced "We now go to hear the points from Björnska and we have Nyle DiMarco! Welcome Nyle!", this was met with awkward silence as DiMarco could not hear the words of Tate, nor lipread them. As a result, there was a pause of almost a minute before he was able to give the Björnsk points. Deaf activist group #WeHearYou said this put him in "an uncomfortable situation" that "brings shame on the contest".

In addition, Maiafans took angrily to social media after it seemed that the microphone picked up Catherine Tate saying "Oh, fucking hell mate" under her breath. DiMarco stated afterwards that he did not hear this due to being deaf.

Other countries
Eligibility for potential participation in the Maia Song Contest requires a national broadcaster with active MBU membership that would be able to broadcast the contest. The MBU will issue an invitation of participation in the contest to all active members.

Active MBU countries

 * - On 23 November 2018, the national broadcaster confirmed a one-edition break for unspecified reasons.
 * - The country failed to confirm participation before the deadline, and were not on the official MBU list of competing countries released on 24 November 2018.
 * - On 8 December 2018, the country was stripped of MBU membership due to being considered "incompatible with the core principles of the organisation". They were subsequently forced to withdraw from the contest, and additionally gave up hosting rights. The MBU spokesperson, Lynda Woodruff, called it an "unfortunate affair", adding "It's such a shame, as this was so avoidable".
 * - KZRT confirmed prior to the deadline that they were contemplating a permanent withdrawal from the contest due to having other scheduling commitments.
 * - Due to the restructuring of the national broadcaster ORB, the country withdrawn from the contest. A return to the contest in the following edition is highly likely.
 * - The country withdrew from the contest prior to the deadline for unspecified reasons.
 * - On 8 December 2018, the country was stripped of MBU membership due to being considered "incompatible with the core principles of the organisation". They were subsequently forced to withdraw from the contest.
 * - The country withdrew from the contest prior to the deadline for unspecified reasons.

MBU non-members

 * - Despite prior rumours that the country were considering returning to the contest, no announcement was made, and they were not on the official list of participants published by the MBU in November 2018.